71 



Pacha of Egypt. It forms a bright rich green bushy plant, 

 with long tliin rough-haired opposite hinceolate leaves, 

 which are auricled and amplexicaul, and in their axils it 

 bears whorls of gay blue labiate flowers. If care is taken 

 to reduce the vigour of leaves, by not giving the plant too 

 much shade and moisture, it becomes very handsome ; but if 

 it is permitted to " run to leaf" too much, its beauty is con- 

 siderably impaired. 



Two circumstances connected with this Asteracantha de- 

 serve particular notice. The whorls of leaves are in sixes, 

 two of the leaves being larger than the other four. The 

 largest leaves are the ordinary leaves of the stem, and each 

 forms at its axil a short cluster of flowers ; below which two 

 other leaves, smaller than the first, make their appearance at 

 right angles with the latter, so that there are three leaves, 

 two small and one large, on each side of the stem. 



But the stem leaves attempt in the first instance to pro- 

 duce an ordinary branch from their axils ; in this however 

 they do not succeed : the branch is abortive, and remains in 

 the form of a spine ; the secondar}?- leaves also attempt each 

 for itself to produce axillary branches, with a like want of 

 success, and a similar result, spines being produced instead ; 

 and hence each wdiorl of flowers is surrounded by six 

 spines, forming a star : wdience the name of Asteracantha 

 (aaTTjp, a star, aKavOa, a spine) has been contrived. 



118. CIRRHOPETALUM nufans ; pseudobulbis ovato-subrotundis rugosis, 

 foliis ovato-subrotundis emarginatis corlaceis humi pronis, scapo erecto 

 elongato, umbella multiflora nutante, bracteis linearibus acuminatis, sepalis 

 glaberrimis : supremo acuminato lateralibus linearibus ligulatis vix acutis, 

 petalis ovatls acutis serrulatis, labello obtuso convexo bicristato, columns 

 angulis obsolete bidentatis. 



A pretty little epiphyte, sent to Messrs. Loddiges from 

 Manilla by Mr. Gumming. It has a nodding umbel of pale 

 straw-coloured flowers, at the end of a weak scape about six 

 inches high. The leaves are from an inch and half to two 

 inches long, very thick, emarginate, and lying almost flat 

 upon the ground. The species is very near C. Wallichii, a 

 Nepalese plant, the specific character of which in the Genera 

 and Species of Orchidaceous plants is erroneous, in conse- 

 quence of bad specimens and an Indian drawing having been 

 misunderstood. It is necessary to correct the definition ot 

 that species as follows. 



